mama eats: quesadilla w/ avocado, salsa and cilantro

The last few days I've found myself doing really well in the feeding myself department... something I have been lazy about in recent months with all the craziness going on. Perhaps like many of you, I rarely sit down to eat, even dinner. I don't usually eat breakfast. I just graze and snack and eat of my kids' plates... and I find myself eating a lot more carbs and processed foods like crackers and things than I should. I have a lot of knowledge on how to eat well, and I just need to do it.

I have been keeping a good stock of stuff that's easy to throw together very quickly, and have found my creative side coming out in the kitchen again when cooking for myself. So, I thought I would share with you guys some of the meals I've come up with that literally take FIVE MINUTES to prepare, and are easy to eat on the go, with toddlers and babies at your heels. 

Maybe this will be a little series... We will see!! I have a few ideas at least to get us started.

YOU NEED:
five minutes
a microwave or skillet
tortillas of any kind (I prefer whole grain, but used flour for the photo)
cheese - preferably monterey jack
1 whole avocado
fresh salsa
cilantro

HOW:
1. make a quesadilla (cheese between two tortillas)... nuke it 30 seconds each side or in the skillet both sides with some oil until melted - takes about 2-3 minutes in a preheated skillet
2. meanwhile, peel, pit and slice your avocado and chop the cilantro
3. when the quesadilla is done, top with the avocado, spoon salsa over all of it and top with fresh cilantro.
4. eat it with a fork and knife... :)

That's it! Totally yummy, healthy and filling. I eat this for breakfast sometimes!

Nutrition curious?

• Avocados are one of natures most nutrient dense foods, full of healthy fats which every woman needs.
• Cheese is a good source of protein!
• Whole grain tortillas used in place of flour or corn tortillas provide added fiber, protein and a lower glycemic index, important for regulating blood sugar. 
• This can be easily made gluten free with use of a corn tortilla!
• This recipe provides about 550 calories, 20 grams of protein, 31 grams of poly and monounsaturated fats, 16 grams of fiber, along with the many minerals and nutrients found in avocados!
• I found that if I ate this around 9 AM I was not hungry again until after noon or 1:00, which is a rare thing for me! 

Let me know what you think!

Love, 

Brooke

easy peasy and super healthy kale and root vegetable stew

I think we're due for a recipe around here... something warming, healthy, and Mommy friendly.

Normally I plan meals loosely and have staples ready in the freezer/pantry to throw something together. Often though lately I am being forced to improvise with what I have. We're on food stamps right now, ( :( ) which is a huge benefit to us for now, but our budget is extremely limited, so I find myself stretching what we have even more as the month winds down. A lot of times I find I've purchased an ingredient for one purpose but end up using it for something completely different later. This was the case for last night's dinner.

I bought like ten pounds of carrots and three pounds of kale with the intention to juice them, and have yet to get to that part... and there were sweet potatoes in the fruit basket that had been begging to be cooked for a couple weeks... good thing about root vegetables, they keep for a good while... couple that with my stock pile of canned beans (thank you WIC)... I had something delish in mind.

I've made this "stew" before... it's really an elaboration on one of my favorite meals, beans and greens (usually butter beans or field peas and collards). It's hearty, extremely healthy and - to top it off - great for "picking from" to feed a self-feeding infant! I tend to choose meals so that I don't have to prepare something completely different for Noah. Top it off with the fact that every meal I cook should be at least gluten free and ideally both gluten free AND casein free for Dakota... well, I have a lot of factors to consider. This pretty much covers them all.

Kale and Root Vegetable Stew (original recipe by Brooke Hammel)

Ingredients:
2 - 3 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks (1 1/2 inches minimum)
4 large whole carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
4 or 5 big handfuls of chopped kale (I recommend prewashed, prepackaged kale - kale has lots of pesticides and is hard to clean unless you want to buy organic, and that is even better!)
1/3 to half a 6-qt soup pot full of water (3 qts seems like a lot... so lean towards 2 qts or 8 - 9 cups)
two packets of Wiley's Greens Seasoning (available in the produce section, otherwise click on link and order)
1 can of black eyed peas, unseasoned and drained
1 can of Great Northern beans, unseasoned and drained
a little garlic

Directions: This recipe couldn't be easier and is ready to eat as soon as your root vegetables are soft. You don't want to overcook them because the sweet potatoes will break down and become mushy.

Chop the root vegetables into 1 - 1/2 in chunks. Fill your soup pot about 1/3 to 1/2 full of water. Add the Wiley's seasoning packets. Kick the heat up to high to get the water hot and ready for wilting the kale. Add the cans of beans and chopped kale. Bring to a boil and then a hearty simmer until your root vegetables are soft, but not too soft, and the kale is wilted, about 20 minutes.

I served mine with sprouted Ezekiel cinnamon raisin toast (gluten free bread by Udi's for Dakota) and real butter.

The best part is this is totally baby friendly! I just fished out chunks of sweet potato, carrots, beans and kale and they were perfectly soft, and perfectly ready for my little baby boy to eat!

Yes that is a fairy wand he is holding... don't ask.

Everyone enjoyed it... well, almost everyone - Shiloh won't eat much of anything these days that looks "weird"... the hubs ate two bowls of it. And there's at least four servings remaining in the fridge. This should serve up to 8 people I reckon and give us leftovers for tonight.

Enjoy it! Bless y'all!

Love B

yeehaw for muffins (two recipes)

Since we've been on a super tight budget over the last month I've learned to really stretch a dollar and when it comes to the food front, it's easy to do when you're not eating out. I love to cook - it's one of my favorite things to do, so making things from scratch, while extremely economical, is always pleasurable.

I have this "Essential Vegetarian" cook book by Diana Shaw (http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Vegetarian-Cookbook-Guide-Foods/dp/051788268X) that I use from time to time. It has an excellent reference for use in cooking of the basic staples of the vegetarian diet (grains, beans, etc) as well as a guide to the many types of grains and vegetables and how to cook them. I love how hearty each dish is - so pure and simple but so good and warming to the soul. Anyway, she has a great muffin recipe in there that I've modified a little bit. I've been making these muffins each week, changing them up each time to keep it interesting. Of course, a hot muffin with butter and a cup of coffee (decaf in my case, since I'm nursing) is hard to beat, especially with the cooler morning temps rolling in with the change of the seasons (come on, Fall!).

So here it is... with my modifications:

Heat oven to 500 degrees... grease a muffin tin. I prefer not to use paper cups because I like how the muffins look when they come out without the paper.

2 cups whole wheat flour (Bob's Red Mill is the best) or 1 cup whole wheat + 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup flaxseed oil
1 cup buttermilk or whole milk or even plain yogurt
1/3 cup raw sugar, honey or agave nectar (you don't have to use as much honey)
fruit and/or nuts or your choosing (I've used fresh peaches, frozen blueberries, and dried fruit as well as pecans and walnuts - I like roasted nuts best and frozen fruit best)

As simple as it gets: mix the dry ingredients, then mix the wet ingredients including the fruit if you choose to add fruit. DO NOT OVER-MIX... you only want the wet and dry to be barely moistened.

Fill muffin cups almost to full. Pop in the oven and after closing the door, drop oven temp to 400 degrees - this gives the muffins a nice lofty top. Cook for 28 - 30 minutes. Allow to cool in tins for about 5 - 10 minutes before removing from tins. Makes about 9 muffins or so.

Today I tried a new recipe because I just went grocery shopping and bought mixed berries (blackberries, raspberries and blueberries) and wanted to just try some oats and yogurt in a recipe. So I found one online and modified it again to see how it would taste. They turned out pretty good - didn't get the nice muffin top but still delish.

Again, oven @ 500... grease muffin tin...

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups WHOLE oats
1/2 cup raw sugar, agave nectar or honey
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
1 cup yogurt - I used full fat organic yogurt from Stonyfield Farms
4 TBSP flaxseed oil
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1+ cups frozen berries

Mix wet, mix dry... put em in your muffin tins and in oven. Drop oven temp to 400 after putting the muffins in the oven. Bake for 28 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.

Yummy!